It Started With Paris

By Cathy Kelly

ISBN: 9781455535408

Author’s Website: http://www.cathy-kelly.com/

 

Review brought to you by OBS reviewer Andra

Synopsis:

The new novel from #1 international bestselling author Cathy Kelly.

It all started with Paris. At the top of the Eiffel Tower, a young man proposes to his girlfriend. In that second, everything changes, not just for the happy couple, but for the family and friends awaiting their return in Ireland.

Leila’s been nursing a broken heart since her husband suddenly left her, but she’s determined to put on a brave face for the bride. Vonnie, a widow, has finally dared to let love back into her life, but a curveball arises that puts another’s safety at risk. And Grace, a school principal, finds that her son’s impending union brings her ex-husband back into her daily life, and starts to ponder past decisions and wonder if her divorce was in fact a mistake.

As these three women gather around the young couple to prepare for the wedding, they’ll each have to address their own demons and find a way to move forward, whatever the cost.

 

Review:

What a gripping romance.  This is the first book I have read from this author and as such, I am always a bit apprehensive; but I need not have been.  Ms. Kelly’s writing style and storytelling were effortless to read.  Right from the beginning I was captivated, if not at times a bit confused.  It did take me a bit of reading and re-reading to get and keep ALL of the characters straight.  But once that was accomplished, it was smooth sailing.

We begin the story with the prologue where a proposal of marriage between Michael and Katy at the top of the Eiffel Tower takes place.  How romantic. I found it interesting and engaging that in this prologue we get a synopsis of when boy met girl (when they were both placed at the same table at junior infants school) and then we are walked through his inner discussions which led to his decision to propose.  We also get a glimpse at his nervousness during the actual event, he kept thinking:

“Let her say yes, please.”  And then his utter surprise when she said “YES!”  “Really? He said, hardly believing.”

The reader is then thrust into the story – where we are transported from Paris to Ireland. The reader is introduced to new characters with interesting and entrancing stories to tell.  We are introduced to Leila, a woman who is estranged from her husband (Tynan) for the past six months as a result of his philandering ways.  She was holding it together on the outside but inside was another matter.  I found that throughout the book Leila really developed and matured as a person.  Due to a medical emergency, her mother needs help from her children.  Leila rearranges her work life to attend to her mother as it becomes clear that her sister (Susie Martin – a single parent to Jack) is unable to continue providing care for their mother without assistance of her own.  I found that story line was gripping as there certainly was more depth to the family dynamics than I first thought. To me this family emergency assisted Leila in seeing what is important in life – family.  She matured as the story progressed (and gained more confidence as a woman!).  The one part of this story line which I did not flow easily was the relationship between Leila and Devlin. To me I felt the relationship did not mesh naturally.

Next, Vonnie is introduced. Vonnie owns a bakery and creates wedding cakes.  She is involved with Ryan (a single dad of two – Ruby and Shelby) and they embark upon the journey of moving in together with their blended family, never an easy task.  The whole storyline with Ruby was very poignant.  A yound girl screaming (figuratively not literally) to be heard.

I must admit, I was troubled by Ruby’s call for attention (probably because I hate to see a child in pain):

“And maybe if she got thinner, somebody might notice that something was wrong and ask what they could do to help. Because Ruby couldn’t keep going with things the way they were.”

I was very moved by the following:

“Ruby pretended not to mind being an ordinary. She pretended not to care that she wasn’t beautiful, even though Vonnie, her sort-of-stepmother, insisted she was. That was part of Vonnie’s shtick-she told people they were beautiful, fabulous, talented all the time, the way she did with Shane. Ruby found it both astonishing and quite sweet, because she could never remember her own mother saying ‘You’re fabulous, you’re beautiful, Ruby’.”

Grace (mother of the groom) has a story as well, which is delved into and involves her ex Stephen.  Did they make a mistake splitting up all those years ago?  Or was it just the blissful haze of their son’s engagement talking?  I really felt sorry for Julia (current wife to Stephen) when Stephen kept Julia away from the engagement supper.  He seemed to just be on a path of marital destruction.  This storyline (out of the three storylines) I found to be a bit duller and predictable.

As the story progresses towards the engagement party, the engaged couple provide more reason to celebrate – a baby is on the way.  As with many stories of life – there are twists and turns and I found the journey worth traveling.

While it took me a while to get used to the switching up of storylines and the myriad of characters, once that was achieved, the story flowed and was quite enjoyable.  I felt the Leila storyline portraying family dynamics (and how they changed over time) along with the issue of aging parents well told.  Vonnie’s trials and tribulations with melding of families, potential eating disorders (and just generally living with teenagers) was portrayed in a realistic manner.  Overall, an enjoyable read.

*OBS would like to thank the publisher for supplying a free copy of this title in exchange for an honest review*